


News

by tatooedlaura



Series: Life, Part 3 [13]
Category: The X-Files
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-21
Updated: 2018-02-21
Packaged: 2019-03-22 07:08:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,043
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13758900
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/tatooedlaura/pseuds/tatooedlaura
Summary: Maggie needs to know ...





	News

“We need to tell Maggie.”

Scully, sitting in the car the next day, looking through the falling snow at the house, knowing her mother was inside, asked the sky, “do we have to right now?”

Mulder answered instead, “Yes, right now. It’s getting ridiculous. Skinner has to keep his mouth shut, probably lying to her right and left; I can’t look her in the eye anymore without feeling enough guilt to make me have to leave the room.” Poking her in the leg, “you’re doing fine and you’re already not working as hard,” backpedaling rapidly, “I’m sorry, as dangerously as you were last time and Pfaster is dead and we have three deadbolts on the door and you have crazy mad gun skills and you are always packing at least one if not two deadly weapons … and when absolutely necessary, a deadly dill pickle.”

“If something happens though, I don’t want to make her sad again.”

“Nothing is going to happen and besides, they’re going to wonder why you’re not drinking the Punch.”

“I miss the Punch.”

Nudging her, then motioning towards the door handle, “you can have it again after you’ve birthed the baby, now exit, woman, I’m hungry.”

Once in the house, kitchen sounds drifted towards them and Scully, oddly giddy, deciding she was doing this thing and doing it right now, yelled towards the room where she knew her mother was, “Ma?!”

Maggie’s voice rang clear from the back of the house, “Dana!?”

“Don’t serve me any Punch!”

“Why?”

“I’m pregnant.”

The ensuing crash and shatter of something breaking echoed down the hall, the immediate hush that followed hung heavily in the air, waiting, shivering, quaking at the mere possibilities her announcement carried.

“Say again, please?”

“You’re going to be a grandma again.”

With a very audible gasp, Maggie came flying around the corner, grabbing her daughter in a hug so tight Scully thought she’d never breathe properly again, “say it one more time.”

Feeling awfully stupid about having kept the whole thing a secret for this long, she squeezed her mother back, “I’m pregnant. Did you drop dinner?”

“Shit. Yes, I did but I don’t care. We can order pizza or Chinese or make hot dogs if necessary.” Pulling back, she kissed Scully’s cheek, eyes glowing in blissful happiness, “you’re really pregnant?”

“Little over two months. I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner.”

“I will be mad at you later for waiting so long.” Finally shifting to look at Mulder, “at least this explains why you keep running from the room when we end up alone.”

Chuckling, Mulder reached over Scully to give Maggie her own hug, “hi, Maggie.”

Making it to the kitchen, they caught Skinner just finishing mopping up Pierogi and sausage, “you two could have planned that a little better. Maybe wait until the casserole dish was on the table.”

Maggie first thanked him for cleaning up, then leveled a dawning gaze at him, which, by God, made him shrivel a little inside, “you already knew, didn’t you?”

“I am completely ignorant of any and all information pertaining to anything of any consequence that may wind up with me sporting a black eye.” Moving towards the freezer and out of her reach, “didn’t I see some frozen potato soup in here the other day?”

“Smooth, Walter, very smooth.” Mulder grinned at his boss, “so, where are the rest of the ladies? There should have been a lot more noise.”

“Betty, Janet and Lillian should be here any second, Ruth has a cold and Ellie is babysitting her grandson tonight.”

“So, there will be more of this hubbub later?”

Skinner nodded, “hopefully they all show up at once.”

They did.

It got very loud.

&&&&&&&&&

Several hours later, potato soup consumed, last minute biscuits devoured, Mulder sat nursing his cards, along with his second glass of Punch, not drunk, not sober but hovering in that contemplative zone where things always took a little turn to the unexpected, “Scully?”

“Mulder?”

“We should apologize again to your mom about not telling her about the baby sooner.”

Maggie, sitting right beside him, put her hand on his arm, “it’s okay, Fox. I understand waiting. I have lost babies myself so there’s no need to apologize.”

Suddenly sober, suddenly sad, “you have?”

Feeling the loss somewhere in the back of her soul still to this day, she gave him a small smile, “there was one between Melissa and Dana and one between Dana and Charlie.”

“I had no idea.”

“It’s not something I share frequently. Both times I was under a tremendous amount of stress, with Bill at sea, toddlers at home, not much help given we were on a new base at each point. I wonder if maybe I had asked for more help, even from the strangers around me, I would have been able to carry them.” Seeing the dark cloud descending behind Mulder’s eyes, she smiled at him, warm and reassuring, “but imagine, Fox, if those children had lived, you wouldn’t have my Dana and we wouldn’t have you and Sarah and Toby and Jake and Charlie as we know him so when you look at it like that, it takes the edge off circumstances. Now,” standing to survey the quiet table, “who’s ready for Strawberry surprise?”

Scully grinned, wanting to distance herself from the conversation, her hand unconsciously on her belly, “THE strawberry surprise?”

“The one and only strawberry surprise.”

As she did with other things she wanted in her life, she held out her hands, wiggling her fingers towards her face, “gimee, please.”

Mulder’s thoughts remained agitated and seeing Scully’s torn as well, hiding so well behind shining blue eyes, he found her foot beneath the table, sock against sock, toe running lightly over arch. Knowing he hit the right appendage by the slightest start of her muscles, minute tensing then darting eye to meet eye, he whispered across the table, vision only for her, “will you help me find a partner tomorrow?”

Skinner watched them from two seats down and feeling privy to a secret world, he stood, moving to crouch by Scully, “I’ll get you a stack of backgrounds by tomorrow afternoon.”

Without thinking, she kissed the crown of his shiny, bald head, “thanks, Walter.”


End file.
